Death in Paradise star Ralf Little has been a household name for years – but what we do know about his love life?
Actor Ralf Little and his TV presenter Lisa Rogers pictured in 2001
He’s a regular on TV screens, but Death in Paradise star Ralf Little’s love life has often made the headlines over the years.
From iconic roles in The Royle Family, Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, actor Ralf has remained booked and busy. He also played Detective Inspector Neville Parker in the BBC Death in Paradise series from 2020 to 2024, reports the Mirror.
Away from the TV sets though, what do we know about his real-life romances? Who is his famous ex? And what is the heartbreaking reason he doesn’t have children? Here’s everything we know about Ralf’s love life..
Ralf’s romance with Welsh star
Ralf dated Welsh presenter Lisa Rogers in 2000. Lisa presented Channel 4 engineering game show Scrapheap Challenge from 2002 to 2008, and also worked on The Big Breakfast and reality show The Block.
As FreeLibrary reports, Ralf previously gushed over Lisa and said: “I’ve never carried a picture of anyone in my wallet before. I feel like a right soft ha’p’orth.
“But isn’t she [Lisa] gorgeous? I don’t know how I managed to pull her. I keep looking at her, laughing and thinking I’ve pulled off a great trick. I’m under no illusion that she’s out of my league.”
Ralf and Lisa ended up splitting in 2002 and years later, while speaking to The Standard, he recalled his most memorable night out – and it featured Lisa. He said in 2012: “I had a surprise party thrown for me by my ex [Lisa Rogers] on my last [22nd] birthday at the Met bar.
“Lisa took me for a meal at Nobu and then pretended to take me downstairs for a bit of a dance. All my friends and family came down from Manchester.”
Ralf’s engagement
Ralf was previously engaged to American playwright Lindsey Ferrentino. The couple initially crossed paths in 2016 when he starred in one of her plays alongside Death in Paradise actor Kris Marshall.
Lindsey was awarded the Kesselring Prize in 2016, an honour bestowed upon “up-and-coming” playwrights whose output demonstrates “great promise”. She subsequently produced the critically acclaimed play Amy and the Orphans, which was reportedly being developed into a film for streaming service Netflix,
Speaking warmly about his fiancée several years ago, Ralf told the Mirror in 2020: “She’s doing annoyingly well. If we were ever going to be a power couple I’d have to seriously up my game.”
He continued: “Her career is exploding in a way that makes me both incredibly proud, and obscenely jealous.”
Nevertheless, by May 2024 reports emerged that the couple had parted ways. Media outlets observed that Lindsey had been spotted without her engagement ring.
Ralf’s heartbreaking reason for not having kids
Earlier this year, Ralf struggled to hold back tears as he revealed the heartbreaking reason behind his decision not to have children.
In an episode of Will and Ralf Should Know Better, Ralf was asked, “what’s the worry about children” to which he acknowledged: “It’s a lot of work, innit? I bought a bread maker once and I loved making that bread, but after a little whilst, I was like, I’ll just unplug it and put it under the cupboard. You can’t really do that with babies, can you?”
The charity’s leader then enquired: “Ralf, what is it that you’re most afraid of?” to which the ex-Death in Paradise star replied: “I’ve lived a lot of my life having a mentality where there’s nothing I can’t walk away from.
“It’s actually terrifying to me, the idea of loving something so completely and irreversibly. I can’t walk away from it intact. That’s terrifying to me.”
Death in Paradise is available to watch on BBC iPlayer
